Writing Vodcast 4 Michael and Lorri What place

Writing Vodcast #4 Michael and Lorri

What place does writing have in the 21 st century? Trends and implications Trends in 21 st century communication Implications for writing Global Potential for wider contexts and audiences Digital – increasing importance of visual and multimodal texts Need to be multi-literate: writing part of a repertoire of literacies, using a range of technologies Instantaneous Speed and efficiency valued, yet also need for care and responsibility Competitive – many communicators clamouring Need to be concise and effective for attention Rise of social media, decline of mass media More power and control to individuals; new media demand different approaches to writing

Sobering stats from NESA… ØYear 9 students in NSW in 2019 were 5 months behind the writing level of Year 9 students in 2011. ØOne in 6 Year 9 students in 2019 were below the minimum standard in writing required to succeed in their final years of school, compared to one in 20 for reading and numeracy. ØDecline across the board, but more pronounced for advantaged students. ØDecline begins in the later primary years and gaps widen in high school. ØIn a recent survey, almost half of 4000 NSW teachers say they were poorly trained to teach writing. ØTwo-thirds said they were minimally or not trained to teach grammar, punctuation, spelling, paragraphing and sentence structure. ØA quarter say they devote less than an hour of class time per fortnight to teach writing.

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